G/TBT/W/689  
26 November  2019 
(19-8055) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original:  Spanish  
 
  
EUROPEAN UNION  – AMENDMENTS TO THE DIRECTIVE 2009/28/EC ,  
RENEWABLE ENERGY DIR ECTIVE  
STATEMENT BY ECUADOR  TO THE COMMITTEE ON  TECHNICAL BARRIERS T O TRADE  
13 AND 15 NOVEMBER  2019 
The following communication , dated 13 November  2019, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Ecuador . 
 
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1.1.  Ecuador thanks  Indonesia, Colombia and Malaysia, and agrees with the analysis conducted . 
1.2.  The delegated act  provides for specific standards on biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels 
produced from food or feed crops, to address what it refers to as emissions produced by indirect 
land-use change (ILUC).  
1.3.  Various studie s have found the methodolog y of existing  ILUC models, the basis on which the 
EU defin es ILUC in this measur e, to be problematic . 
1.4.  In general, ILUC methodologies used for calculation s (such as  IFPRI, CARB, GLOBIOM) operate 
on inadequate budgets and outdated data , since they use historical information and do not 
incorporate the most recent data and scientific evidence as a matter of course.  
1.5.  As it is based on such methodology, the EU standard automatically labels  crops  which had 
historically experienced deforestation as being o f high ILUC  risk, while completely setting aside data 
that show recent prog ress which has led to innovation and the implementation of improved  
legislation and better practices by producing countries  
1.6.  In its current form , the regulation has a d ual effect : 
• On one hand , it creates arbitrary discrimination between similar biofuels, so me of which are 
from crops that are less productive per hectare than oil palm, such as rapeseed and sunflower, 
but the se are nonetheless not considered as being of high ILUC risk . This is inconsistent 
with obligations under  Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement and in Articles I:1 of the  GATT 1994 . 
 
• On the other hand , it favours the use of raw material s of European origin,  in violation of  the 
principle of national treatment contained in Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement and Articl e III:4 
of the GATT 1994.  
1.7.   As there is no current consensus among scientists on ILUC methodology, instead of  its 
unilateral adoption by the E U, the proposed methodology should be extensively discussed at the 
international level , and endorsed multilaterally, and especially with the participation of the 
developing countries that provid e raw materials.  
1.8.  There is currently  no certainty regarding the hypotheses used, benchmarks for oil palm 
plantations, estimates of greenhouse gas emissions in the p roduction of palm oil, or projections 
concerning the types of land to be used for the expansion of oil palm crops . Calculations of 
deforestation have been carried out from a global perspective without considering differences that 
exist between individual c ases. G/TBT/W/689  
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  1.9.  The ILUC methodology used for calculations must recognize that palm oil can be of low ILUC 
risk when produced sustainably.  
1.10.   In this regard, it is important to emphasize that Ecuador has made significant progress in 
meeting its national targets and com mitments for mitigating the effects of climate change, as it is 
currently a world leader in the implementation of policies, measures and actions for reducing 
emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) . This commitment has also been 
made by  the Ecuadorian palm -growing sector, which signed an agreement to move towards 
sustainable, deforestation -free oil palm production, with a roadmap setting out clear 
zero-deforestation goals and commitments . 
1.11.   Ecuador is also the second country in the world t o have met the requirements established by 
the UNFCCC to gain access to performance -based payments for reducing emissions from 
deforestation and forest degradation.  
1.12.   Specifically, in its REDD+ Action Plan "Forests for Good Living", Ecuador set itself the goal of 
reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation, as evidenced by the results achieved . 
For instance , our average gross annual rate of deforestation was  94,353 h ectares between 2015 and 
2016, compared with 129,943 hectares in the period 1990 to  2000, representing a decrease of 27 %. 
This has amounted to a reduction of over 29  million  tonnes of CO2 equivalent between 2009 
and 2014. 
1.13.   It is f undamental that such achievements made in the context of international commitments 
be taken into consideration . ILUC methodology used for calculations should provide incentives, not 
penalize countries that have made great effor ts to produce sustainable palm oil.  
1.14.   Attention should also be drawn to the socio -economic impact that th is measure could have on 
developing countries that produce palm oil . In Ecuador the palm oil sector is comprised of 
approximately 6,500 producers, of which 88 % have fewer  than 50 hectares under production, while 
51% are small producers in small -scale family farming with fewer than 10 hectares under production . 
1.15.   This sector earned around USD 226 million  in 2018, occupying  fifth place in agricultural 
exports from Ecuador . The sector accounts for some 120,000 direct and indirect jobs throughout the 
production chain . 
1.16.   In view of the above, Ecuador calls on the EU to change its ILUC methodology, and the way 
in which it is using the measure  in question  to single out palm oil for exclusion . We understand that 
the EU is seeking to meet legitimate goals as part of their commitment to , and support for , alleviating 
the effects of climate change . Nonetheless , any environmental regulation  for fulfilling the European 
climate agenda must be  compatible with the multilateral trading system - in other words, it must 
ensuring that the measure would not constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination, 
or a disguised restriction on international trade.  
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